Majesty of the Seas - my first cruise experience

I thought i wanted to start my post out with a majestic picture of Majesty of the Seas i took from the shore of Cococay.

As a part of our "studytrip" we went on a 5 days cruise with Majesty of the Seas. Officially we were there to study and we did do some tasks while on board but let's face it; It was a pretty awesome vacation trip.

We started out by checking in at Miami Beach and the ship is so big that the first time i could take a picture of the whole ship at once, was the picture above. It still amaze me that there are som many other cruises that are bigger.
When we got on board we were met with this dark and golden colours everywhere and my first thought was "I don't really fit in here, do i?" Because i came in my worn out sandals and a short dress while the other passengers were mostly families that was dressed really nicely. But there was a whole lot of "spring breakers" as well so it kind of made me relax a bit more.
It was awesome to sail out from Miami! We har just sayed at that beach for the past few weeks and seen all the big ships sail out, so it was fun to be on the ship and look down the beach and recognize all the places. I think all my classmates was trying to find our cabins or something so i spoke with a elderly couple that was use to go cruising and they said that Royal Caribbean was the best. Some of the other companies had a lot of very noisy parties while Royal Caribbean is pretty chill. Later we found out that they actually was for everyone, now that they had kids activities, some for everyone and well, some activities for those with a lot of money as well.

Miami Beach

The elevators, the shopping area and the casino.

On our cruise we were sailing at night and explored a new place at day. I don't know why but it made me more comfortable that i could not see how much 'out in the middle of nowhere we were when we were sailing. I will not say that i'm afraid of sailing but i feel more comfortable with driving and flying. It didn't really make it better that the restaurant we were eating on at night was (i guess) right above the motor or something. It was vibration non stop and i had to wear my sea bands while eating so i didn't get sea sick.

And now that we are at the restaurant. One of out assignment on board was to document their ways to do "an extra service" which i felt every evening. The first evening we got their we found the table that was ment for our cabins and the waiter was there immediately. I told him that i was allergic to milk products and he went out to the chef to find out what on the card that was without milk products. He continued to do this every evening before we even got there and could tell me what i could order from that days menu card the second i sat down. He even came with some special bread that was made without milk BEFORE everyone else got their bread. For the dessert he could not promise me something from the card so every evening he came with "what they could make or find without milk" which often resulted in 2-3 different dessert place in front of me before the others even got the dessert card. It was pretty awesome and their brownies without butter was the best thing i have ever tasted!!!

I will marry this brownie one day!

One of the days, after exploring Nassau, my friends went to the pool on board (salt water pool) and some went for a nap so i went to explore the whole ship. I wanted to find the Starbucks which i found out was disguised as a normal coffeeshop because they served other things than Starbucks. But i pretty much walked around and looked lost so one of the employees went up to me and asked if i needed any help and i told him that i was out exploring and i was looking for Starbucks. I ended up getting a full guided tour and the whole ship! The theatre, the casino and the different bars. He also showed me where the captain was sitting, which surprisingly was not on the top but actually at level 10 out of 12 and in the front. I asked the guy more than once if he really had time to show me around for so long and he said it was fine.

I the evenings there were a lot of entertainment you could watch or attend. They had some karoke in the theatre place and later a quiz that got really physical on some strange levels. I didn't participate much but it was freaking fun to watch. The spring breakers was crazy at that point. The last night they had some kind of dance competition on the upper deck that ended out in a Macarena. The waiters at the restaurant also made a show the last night and made a chain dance while some of them balanced thing on their heads; like winebottles! But be aware that it is a "tradition" to swing your napkins in the air if you are not dancing with them. Crumbs are flying everywhere!!!

All in all it was a really cool and fun experience. I would do it again for sure! I can nothing but recommend Majesty of the Seas!

Tips for the trip!

• All the food is free on board unless you want something fancy like loster for dinner. Even in the small hours you go on the upper deck and get pizza! 
• Only water, lemonade and stuff like that are included in the prize so i recommend that you buy one of their "drink deals" so you can get free soda and other good stuff! I chose the non-alcohol pack and got free Starbucks instead!
• Don't be afraid of asking about anything on board! They are all really nice!
• Attend the evening activities! Even if you are just watching, it is really fun and enjoyable.
• Go to the upper deck and stand in the front of the boat. It is really windy, but it is so worth it! Also i have heard it should help if you are sea sick. 
• Look out for sales at "shopping street". They pop up from time to time and you can get some awesome thing for small prices.
• If you can avoid it, then don't bring the biggest luggage. We were 4 in each room and we could hardly get around in our cabin because of the size on our luggages.
• Bring nice clothes! At least one of the evenings is "formal"!!! (Thank god for Orlando shopping!) 

The view from my upper bunk bed. Also i had a random mirror behind my pillow..
It's always nice to see your own ugly morning face as the first thing when you wake up.

My "formal" dress

SOBE Wine & Food festival

Back in when i was in Florida we were so lucky to work at the South Beach Wine and Food Festival. We lived at the SoBe hostel and hat to walk from 2th to 16th where the volunteers tent was but i was working at the south tent so i had to walk almost all the way back again, just inside the festival walls.

The first day we were standing around a lot because they didn't really know what to do and (sorry) but the communitation was really bad between the leaders. We were all under a teamleader and mine kept disappearing? I only saw her the first day so i was kind of lost the next day but i ended up under another teamleader. We started to get the tables for the exhibitors and was not doing much anyway. The first day of the festival was also kind of slow because we could now really do anything. There is a low in US that says that we could not handle alcohol as volunteers so we could not ever lift the exhibitors boxes for them.

Saturday was the day where everything happened. It was more food now that wine and alcohol but they took me from the South tent and and put me in the welcome center. So i used my whole Saturday by saying hello to people and give them giftbags. There were so many people and we were running around and did get a really late lunch. I was a little pissed that i didn't get to be inside the walls and experience the festival because that was my job at first. There was a lot of awesome things happening inside that i really wanted to see and help with but the leaderes was sooo confused and ran around. Because those who send me in the Welcome center did not talk with my new teamlader in the South tent, so they thought i wasn't there at all. It was really confusing.

The last day i RAN into the festival and to the South tent so i did not miss it that day. There was not at much activity as Saturday but there was A LOT of people anyway. It was fun and i became somehow friends with some of the exhibitors i helped out. We had a lot of fun and i got to talk with some of the other students from FIU that volunteered. We talked about the different way we studied in Denmark vs US which we on the trip experienced. It was funny to hear someone else's opinion about random stuff and how different it is, just because you live in another first world country.

All in all a fun thing to try and academically we felt our models about working environment on our own bodies. You understood it much better, instead of just reading about it all.

Teambuilding at FIU

While we were in Miami we went to a teambuilding exercise that i honestly think that we should have had in the start of out trip.
It was out at the FIU as well and was right by the sea. They had us do a lot of different tasks you could only do if you were working as a team. You were forced into communicate with people you didn't really know and ask for help or listen to a stranger.

We had tasks where we had to do it without speaking and only use our body language. We had to make a huge "ship" balance so it didn't tip over with any of us.
The instructors challenged us on time in many different physical tasks and i can tell you that my legs hurt so much after that day. The fact that we lived on seconds floor at the hostel was killing me. But i have to say, that there was not a challenge we didn't complete! We were quite awesome!

In the end of the day we had to climb. Many from our class was dying a little inside when they saw the "tower" when we arrived at the place. I am very glad that i'm not afraid of hights because our journalist had a Go Pro camera with her that she placed on my head so i could film my whole journey up the tower. I hope her video will be released at some point because the view was amazing up there. Something that wasn't too fun was to be the one on the ground that has to hold on tight so the person climbing didn't fall down. You get a pretty serious wedgie when they have to get down and you have to put in your weight against theirs.

Florida International University

So we went to Miami after a week in Orlando to visit FIU (Florida International University). The fist day it was raining like crazy and we actually got lost on our way there, because it was raining so much that we could not see the roads we had to turn on. So people! IF it rains in Miami, it freaking rains in Miami. OK!
When we finally got there we ran from building to building to find our class and Professor Tanke. We were soaked when we finally sat down and i'm pretty sure that the american students were laughing at us. We could have come right up from the ocean and we would have looked the same. We soon found out that people in Miami are crazy abou the aircondition, so note to self; bring a sweatshirt next time you go to school and have to be indoor. They told us that there is a lot of aircondition on there schools because their professors have to wear kind of nice and formal clothes and it would be too hot for them. The University was so kind to us and gave us free dry shirts with the schools logo on.

In Professor Tanke's class we had about Multicultural Diversity. They take it much more serious than we do in Denmark and i do believe they think about it more than we do. It's not just about race but also age, religion and gender. It was kind of weird at first to discuss at first because we had about service and toursim? But as a lot of examples came on the table it all made sense.
One in particular i remembered was that one of our danish students said something like "All elderly people don't like to see people with piercings and tattoos behind the counter in a supermarked" and the american students all gasped. How could we say "all elderly people"?! It was too generalizing and mad to say. Im sure that if you said that in Denmark not anyone would see it as offensive in any way or you would just shrug. And not to be rude or anything but it sounds like that americans are easier to be offended and if you work in the tourism industry and world with people you have to be extra careful about what you say.

We went to the University the rest of the week and had the opportunity to really see how it was to go there and enjoy campus. It was so awesome and i'm a bit jealous about it.They had a pool right at campus and their canteen was a freaking Subway. Simple 6 menu, yes please! Give me all them cookies! Their library had a starbucks because... why not. I could really get use to it!

Universal Studios Florida

The day after spending the whole day i Disney we took a trip to Universal Studios. We bought a Park-to-park ticket so we could go from Universal Studios and Adventure island as we wanted and well.. take the Hogwarts express from park to park.
I have to admit i was there mostly because of the Harry Potter World which was spread out in both the parks. In the Universal Studios park we saw Crustyland like in The Simpsons, some kind of Dapper land with blues drummers and Shrek. We went to find the Hogwarts Express. We met a guy working near "the Kings Cross station" and he told me that i could take the train, or i could continue down the street we were on. Sure thing and we saw the Nightbus and all but then... we went into something that looked like a wall? It was a little weird but on the other side... Diagon Alley! And i have to say... I cried... a whole lot. It was magic and i couldn't take a picture that described how awesome and beautiful it was to see, if you are a huge Harry Potter fan. And i am very sorry Kristina, that you had to witness that. But i went into every single store in Diagon Alley even though most of them had the same things. I tried the Gringotts ride which was with amazing 3D effects. I can't describe how awesome it was. If you are just a little fan of Harry Potter DO IT.

After that we went to the Adventure Island with the Hogwarts Express whivh was crazy awesome as well. Instead of having the view of just trees on the way there, they showed the sceenary that are showed in the movies and Hagrid flies pass on his motorcycle. And on the close to see through doors we got a visit from the Dementors but was saved by the shadows of Harry Potter and his friends. You could hear them talk as well.
As you step out on the Adventure Island you step right out in Hogsmeade and this time i DIDN'T CRY ok. But it was a snow landscape and i bought a Pumpkin Juice to go (not good though) and went through the street until i came to Hogwarts. We were there on Valentines day, so there was long queues everywhere so you could stand there and see everything and take pcitures of all the magical Harry Potter things that was around you. The portraits were talking and Dumbledore was in his office and Harry and his friends were in the classroom which looked exactly like in the movie. The Hogwarts ride again was amazing. You were fliying through a quidditch game, had a dragon chase you and you went through the forbidden forrest before you fly over the lake to the castle again. It was beautiful!
All in all a really good day for me and my Harry Potter heart!

Experience Kissimmee

Experience Kissimmee was our first company visit. They made a presentation for us and one of the more interesting. They made a presentation -first one for the sport and event students - and then for all of us. Experience Kissimmee had a lot to do with sport and sport events so they were very proud of how many partners they had and what they could make happen between them.
I do believe they told us that they had more than 1300 partners in their programme which is a lot! You could even be a partner for free.
Even though they had a lot of partners they had a great relationship with so many of them. They showed us that by introducing us to one of them and his little pet alligator. It was a dude from a alligator park they had as their partner and he brought Fluffy with him and we could try and hold him if we wanted. It was not like a huge alligator like we see on TV but a little 3 years old on that your hold with one hand if so. Do I have tonly mention that it peed on him 3 times while we were there?
But that he came with fluffy really showed what you can make happen if you have a great relationship with partners, coworkers osv even though you do two totally different jobs on a daily basis.

Legoland Orlando

I know I'm a little behind do on the writing but I'll try to catch up now!

When we were in  Orlando we went to Legoland which was quite anice experience.  It's funny to see a Americanen version of something so Danish as Legoland. We are all used to the Legoland in Billund so it was fun to see how little a different there was to the parkside but still it was a whole other experience because of the peoplesales different view of costumer service, the environment and we'll.. it's America!

We met up with Kim - who is not a girl but a Danish guy! - who have been working outside Denmark the last 15 years. I have been thinking working outside Denmark as well so it was nice to hear a really personal story from another dane. When we were at Valencia College we were told to "just do it" and go abroad but Kim told us to think first and do what your heart tells you. You can not  over 10 times in a month just because of a job. You have friends you have to stay contacted with and family that may move with you and so on. He was interesting to listen to for sure! His two British coworkers also told their story from the bottom of the service industry to the top where they are now. And it sounds like it is a crazy ride.

Valencia College and Madame Tussauds etc

We went to Valencia College to meet a class there we kind of like our education. They were an international class from all over the world. We met one of their professors that showed us how he interacted with their students and included them in his classes.
We met a representative from the Disney program that we can participate in after summer if we want. It's an opportunity to work at Disney as your 3 month internship but you are there a whole semester and goes to College while there. It sound really awesome and the professor was really nice so if you have the money to go then it would be a perfect opportunity to do.

We went on a tour around the College to see the differences between anow American and Danish campus. As I already learned; with everything is bigger in America. Their campus was huge comparing. It is also a place for theme to just hang out after classes. They have coffee and donutshops around the campus! I think our school could learn from that! *wink*

After the visit we were a few that found a really nice area around the Orlando Eye which is a huge ferriselection wheel. Beside it was an aquarium and Madame Tussauds. The Madame Tussauds was not that big comparing to the one in London, but they have made it a way so the pictures you take is a lot better and there are more space between the different figures. The staff was also very friendly and the dude taking pictures at the start was funny and joking around pretending to be a wax figure himself. It was something I never would have experienced in London. They are a bit more outgoing and playful here, which is really nice and you get a unique experience.
And do I have to mention the Ben and Jerry ice cream store right outside Orlando Eye??

Visit Orlando

Yesterday  we have been  visiting 'Visit Orlando' in there huge glass building.  It was quite a different from 'Visit Skive' that we have been visiting as a part of our lectures at home.
We went to see a presentations from the leader of the sales departments around the world. It is fun how he told us that people in Orlando didn't know what 'Visit Orlando' actually did and work with now that 'Visit Denmark' is so known at home. But the main tourists in Denmark is just Danes so it was weird to hear the leader say that "why should people in Orlando know what they do, and why should they promote themselves in Orlando,  because they are already there and should know what is here!" It's a whole other mentality they have over here.

After Visit Orlando we got our first real shopping experience. We went to Orlando international premium outlets and it was actually quite and experience! As soon as you get inside a store they say welcome to you and tell you their names if you need their help later. They make sure you can find whatever you need. It is very different from Denmark where you are pretty much on your own in a store. As a person that wants to look around before going to the employee and ask any questions it was a little weird and felt a bit intrusive. But I guess you get use to the high level of service at some point.

USA: first impression

I am now well rested and in Orlando!
After the longest flight is my life with over an hour delay we are finally here! Yeah the flight from Frankfurt was a lot longer when you have a sick passenger that starts to get ill before take off, so they had to let him off the plane and find his luggage among 1000 of bags.

My first impression of USA was "shit everything is huge here!" From the airport to the Disney area vacation homes was one huge hotel after the other. The cars that we are renting are the biggest cars I have ever been in and nothing like the ones we have in Denmark. And also.. I have never seen SO much fast food in my life. It's everywhere! And wallmart? Gigantic!!!

The houses are really awesome; at least the one I'm staying in. I have heard from others, that they have some dirty sheets and some of the furniture are very used and old. Some of the houses only have sheets for sleeping and no real duvet which is a problem when it is so cold today. It's a little disappointing that it is so cold and we all only have small summer jackets with us. So I'm just laying under the duvet, which I'm grateful for i have right now.

Super bowl was at night and it was quite tame. We were running from house to house to see who had the CBS channel on their TV,  and only the ones with the oldest TV could see it so we all ended up there drinking whatever and eating junk. I must admit I was hit hard by the jetlag and went home to sleep before the match was over but I stayed until the halftime show. It was pretty awesome!

Article about the Florida trip

As i wrote in the last post we are 6 students chosen to be updating from the Florida trip and back in december i was interviewed for the academys homepage to help future students choose if they want to go abroad or not.

The article is - of course - in Danish but if you are interested you can find it HERE.

Before Florida: As a Toursim management student

Besides a post or more about my Florida trip, i will be making a few about the trip before and after for the academy i'm studying at.

This post is to help future students to get ready for their trip, if they need it of course. I like to be prepared for everything before i go anywhere and some of these tips are also from my classmates now that i haven't been to 'murica before myself.

Be in good time!
All the 35 places on the trip was gone in 1 day! Some of us even stayed up until 12pm to write the e-mail to the teacher to make sure that we got a spot on the trip.
Check your passport
Your pasport should be valid until 3 month after you get home from Florida. If it isn't you should get a new one! And have a copy of it with you, so if it gets stolen, you can still travel home!
Get a tablet
It's not something you HAVE to do, but a computer is heavy in the luggage and the teachers insured us that a tablet is enough for what we are going to do on the trip. A smartphone is not enough though.
Get your ESTA or VISA in good time
And for the love of god, print it as soon as you get it or save it as a PDF on your computer. It may dissapear in their system and you will have to pay for it again. (Yes this happened!) You will need to bring it with you as a print anyway.
Get a good Travel Insurance
I'm sure you can buy it along with the ticket when you pay for the trip but if you have your own insurance or your parents have one, you can save some money by buying through theirs and make sure that it is not only a European insurance! (I always buy Gouda which has an app as well)
Save up some money
I know it can be hard to do while studying but i knew about the trip before i even started on this education so i had some time to save up some money. There will be a lot of opportunities for having fun and well... shopping.
Print every piece of information out
It shouldn't be necessary to say this but now that i have been going to a guide school i have seen examples on so many stupid guests that didn't think they had to bring anything because 'the travel agency got all my information' yeah well.. The teachers and travel agency will send you a lot of infomation! bring it all!
Need of data and WIFI
I don't know when Denmark will make it free to use your phone in every other country but until now 3 has something called 3LikeHome so you can use your phone for free in the USA (and almost everywhere else). You can call them and ask if they can give you a SIM-card only for a month so you can use it in Florida. It only cost around 250DKK for a month. (this do not work in Bahamas)
Adoptor for your headphones
I know this sounds weird but you will need an adoptor for your headphones on the plane. You can get one cheap in Tiger store.
Clothes to Wine and Food festival
You are going to work a few days at the Wine and Food festival on SOBE. They require you are wearing khaki coloured shorts that goes to right above the knees. I got a pair in H&M for only 150DKK but you can get them when you are over there as well.
Adaptor
The american plugs is not like the danish! If you are going to charge your phone, tablet and so, you will need an adaptor. You can get them in hardware stores at home or wait till you get to US and buy them in one of the large stores usually a bit cheaper than in DK.
Extra credit card
Always have a extra credit card with you. It has been seen before that someone got theirs stolen and because of that it was hard for them to get on the cruise ship! And well.. buy stuff. So have the number on your phone to your bank so they can block your card if someone takes it!
Taxes and tips
Taxes is not included in the prices over there. In Florida you should add around 6% to the prices. And tips is not in the bills! So if you eat out you will have to add around 15-20% of the price in tips! You can get apps on your phone that can calculate it all for you!
Make a fun list
I don't know if it is just me but i think alot about all the thing i want to try out. So what do YOU want to do in Florida, US? Personally i want to try a corndog and try to find some of the famous 'pumpkin spice' and try and make my own fancy drinks when i get home.
Search some information about Florida!
You are going to be there for a month! Find out where you are going to stay and search the area on google maps or something! I can give you a bit of help here:


Universal studios twitter update
Wine and Food festival twitter update
Disney World twitter update
Search all kind of events in the area you are staying (concerts, theater etc.)
Kissimmee Orlando area
Miami Beach area
Tripadvisor (tips from other travelers)

Me and 5 others are chosen to update on social medias and make videos on the trip. You can find some of the contents on the hashtag down below on instagram
#eadania
And i will be trying me best to update on the hashtag:
#eadaniaflorida

I'm going to Florida!

...i have known this since summer but i have paid for everything now and got my visa so now i am ready! I will officially be gone for a month, February 2016!

I have never been outside Europe so i am preparing me to the extreme and needs to know everything about the areas we are going to stay in. We land in Orlando and is going to live in the Kissimmee area. The part that is known as "the paradise of amusements parks". It's a part of my studies and we don't know exactly what we are going to do. But i think we are visiting VisitOrlando, Legoland and Universal studios as a part of our lessons and then there is extra time to visit Disney if we want to.

When we move on to Miami we are going to volunteer at the Wine and Food festival at South Beach. I have heard it should be really fun and apparently there is some famous chefs know from TV going to be there but i don't really see and cooking shows so i don't really know any of them beforehand but it sounds cool.

We ends the whole trip with a cruise to Bahamas with the Royal Caribbean cruise with All inclusive! I'm usually not much for sailing and cruising is not something that is high on my 'to do' list after having a roommate that was obsessed with Titanic.... But i don't say no to experience something new!

Package from the penpal!

A few days ago i got a package from the US from my lovely penpal :3

She is from the state of Colorado and is a tea drinker and dog lover like me!

We only write each other on email... well we use to xD  because we have been talking a lot about candy.. nice topic i know... but the candy here in Denmark is very different to what they have in the US and reverse, so we got the wunderful idea that we should use our money to send some candy halfway round the earth!!

I got her the famous danish licorice which i almost can imagine her spit out again, because we are the only people who eat it xD

TOM's chocolate and Kongen af Danamrk hard candy was in the backage too.. don't remember the rest... Well i send a drawing too :3